LangGener - Language across generations: contact induced change in morphosyntax in German-Polish bilingual speech

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Björn Hansen
• Subject Area: Individual Linguistics, Historical Linguistics
• Term: from 2017 to 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 381528946

The aim of the project is an integrative account of the Polish-German bilingualism in Poland and Germany including linguistic as well as sociolinguistic aspects. The main objective is answering the question, if morphosyntactic changes induced by German-Polish language contact in bilingual speech differ across generations. The research will focus on the interplay between language biographies and speech of two generations of bilingual communities having experienced important historical events. We hypothesize that the types of replication of the morphosyntactic patterns depend on differences between the language systems of Polish and German. However, the non-systemic factors may also influence their frequency and variability. Language use will be analysed on authentic material gained during field research. The research will focus on bilingual persons of two generations whose biographies has been influenced by different historical conditions: 1) the oldest generation, living in Poland on the territories belonging to Germany before 1945; 2) the middle generation, born in Poland on the same territories, living contemporary in Germany. The study will therefore include persons belonging to two generations, derived from the same families and/or local communities but living in a different language environment.In order to provide empirical material to other researchers, we will create a linguistic data corpus. The language biographies will be analysed in terms of the order and conditions of the language acquisition, their functional distribution, as well as the emotional bonds of the speakers towards the languages. The final stage of the research will be the correlation between the analyses of use of the morphosyntactic replication and language biographies as well as an explanation of the relationship between them. The results of the project will have a significant impact on our understanding of language contact and - especially with regard to the language biographies - on cultural anthropology, ethnology, and the studies on identities of national minorities. The implementation of the project is only possible in cooperation of Slavonic and German philologists from both countries. The researchers involved in the project have a unique and profiled knowledge.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants
• International Connection: Poland
• Co-Investigator: Professor Dr. Marek Nekula
• Cooperation Partner: Professorin Dr. Anna Maria Zielinska